Archive for the ‘Galavantin’’ Category

Instead of a normal evening of firefly rustling, frog gigging, or sitting around eating bonbons, we headed out one night last week for some English Country Dancing. Our church gym was the place to be last Tuesday night, let me tell ya. A local dance group graciously offered to come teach a night of this old form of folk dancing.

All ages showed up for a fun filled time.

If you’ve never heard of English Country Dancing, or Contra Dancing, you may have seen it in movies like Sense and Sensibility, Pride and Prejudice, or Emma.

It’s fun stuff y’all, otherwise people would’ve stopped doing it a long time ago. Documented as early as the late 16th century people have been meeting for English Country Dancing as a social outlet. I can just imagine someone sitting around saying “Earl there seem to be no more frogs left to gig, so shall we dance?”

It’s very much like square dancing without all of the hee-hawing around.

Everyone had a blast.

There was spinning.

And clapping.

And more clapping.

And some more spinning.

And a lot of smiling and laughing going on.

And look at these guys.

Not sure if you can tell, but they’re airborne! It’s like a sport, only with cool music.

Nothing like a night of good clean fun with friends and family.

English Country Dancing or Contra Dancing organizations are popping up all around. There could be a group in your area saving a spot just for you. So, maybe next time you’re all out of things to do and the bonbons are all gone, look for a local dance group and get to dancing.

Here are a few links I found with listing by state of English Country/Contra Dancing groups.

English Country Dancing around the U.S.

Contra Dance in the U.S., Canada and the World

Happy dancing y’all!

During a recent trip to Ambergris Caye, Belize, an island off of mainland Belize, we went on a snorkeling/ fishing trip for a day with our guide Oliver, his assistant Alex and two other couples from Texas. As I shared in “A Day on the Sea. Part I: The Food,” the food was fresh and unforgettable. The rest of that day was just as memorable.

Packed with sun tan lotion and snorkel gear, we started early morning and headed to one of Oliver’s special places on the reef. By the way, the reef off shore in Ambergris Caye is part of a barrier reef that runs from the northern tip of the Yucatan Peninsula, through Belizean waters, ending in Honduras. This 560 mile long reef, called the Mesoamerican Barrier Reef System, is the second largest barrier reef in the world, behind The Great Barrier Reef in Australia. Cool huh?

Anyway, Oliver grew up in Belize and knows the Belizean section of the reef like the back of his hand. Many guides don’t even know of his special places or may not be willing to take you there. Soon after heading out is when we ran into the men spear fishing for lobster that I wrote about in “A Day on the Sea. Part I: The Food.”

After purchasing the lobster, we quickly headed for an area that Oliver knows manatee to frequent. Right after anchoring, he spotted a manatee. We quickly grabbed our snorkel gear and hopped in, but the manatee was already gone. The manatee soon came back, and we had the chance to swim alongside him for a few minutes.

Sorry for the lack of underwater pictures. Wish I had an underwater camera to capture what we saw. In addition to the manatee, there were many tropical fish, including a nurse shark or two. The coral formations were amazing as well. This reef is definitely one of the places to go if you’re into diving or snorkeling.

After snorkeling and fishing at a few different spots, we headed to a small, almost deserted island for lunch. It’s called Shallow Island, or something like that and is close to Caye Caulker, another small Caye off the coast of Belize. I don’t think any of us were expecting what came next. We all thought we’d go to a part of Caye Caulker and picnic on a beach some where but instead we were surprised with a Gilligan’s Island sort of place.

We were greeted by Kilo (hmmm…wonder where he got his name?) one of the resident dogs that lives part time of the island.

Isn’t he a cutie?

We unpacked and got to work making ourselves at home.

Here’s a view of one end of the island. The owner of the island has it set up for fly fisherman. That’s the hut/cabin for the fishermen.

And here’s the view looking toward the other end of the island.

A humble kitchen area…

Some hammocks. Shhh…it’s sleeping beauty.

Playing opossum. Sneaky sneak.

A potty…

A potty in paradise.

What a view for a potty, huh?

Our son, Hank (short for Henry) tried to fish, but thanks to Kilo he didn’t have much luck. Every time a big fish came around, Kilo would jump in after it.

Hank got on to Kilo and gave him a talkin’ to.

I know Hank. You just wanted to fish. But Kilo can’t help it.

He’s a fisherdog baby. That’s what he does. It’s instinctual.

As frustrated as Hank was, Kilo was one cool dog.

You’re one cool dog Kilo.

But wait! Look!

A shark!

And there goes Kilo!

Don’t worry, it’s only a nurse shark – think large catfish kinda mouth. They’re pretty harmless, although you wouldn’t want to get your hand stuck in one of their mouths.

But still, that’s one huge fish dawg.

Crazy dog.

We certainly enjoyed relaxing and exploring the island.

The sun was beginning to drop, so we packed up, made a quick stop by Caye Caulker for some ice cream, then back out on the water for one more quick dip to snorkel before heading back to our resort, Pelican Reef Villas. What a day!

On our return flight a few days later, we just happened to fly right over the teeny island.

I can’t believe I actually was able to capture it from the sky.

And I know Kilo is down there somewhere, probably jumping a barracuda.

Greg, from Pelican Reef Villas, where we stayed, recommended the day trip with Oliver. I’m so glad he did. It was well worth every penny.

Do you have any fun summer outings to share? Do tell.

We’re on vacation this week in Ambergris Caye, Belize. It’s such a beautiful place, with friendly people everywhere. Yesterday we took a snorkeling/fishing trip with our new friend Oliver (in red).

Or is it Denzel?

No, Oliver.

Denzel is that you?

Oliver? Or Doliver?

Anyway, he was quite charming, along with Alex. And don’t let Alex fool you with that Mickey Mouse hat on. He’s got skilz. Mad skilz. There were also two super nice couples from Texas ready for the day full of adventure. With hundreds of pictures documenting the day, this post will focus mainly on the food, which is always a good thing.

Our group left out early in the morning and soon ran into these guys spear fishing for spiny lobster.

Lobster season just opened a few days ago, so the waters are covered with small groups hunting for the lobster down below.

They paddled from a larger boat that we could hardly see in the distance, and, beginning at day break, began diving for the lobster. Unbelievably hard work. When we met up with them they had already been going at it for about 4 hours. Oliver called them over so we could take a peek at their catch.

Look at those beauties.

Whoa. What a boat load.

Oliver bought some for later.

Talk about fresh! That was so cool. We continued on to snorkel for a bit and fish.

The water was crystal blue.

The guys caught a few on board.

While they were fishing, Alex spear fished and brought in a hog fish (I think that’s what it’s called)…

More lobster…

And a few other fish.

It was getting close to lunch time, so we headed to a teeny tiny island, much like Gilligan’s Island, (which I can’t wait to tell you all about in another post) to break for lunch.

Alex prepared the lobster and fish.

He added seasonings. Oh, yeah, there was some chicken too. (I’ve got a picky eater.)

He was the man to have on hand.

The filleted fish were placed on the bottom, followed by the lobster, then all was topped with onions, peppers and more seasonings.

All the while, Oliver was getting the fire ready. He used coconut shells to start the flame.

And here’s the kitchen where it all came together.

The food was covered and steamed over the fire.

We all hung around waiting and watching these guys do their thing. Here are our fellow adventurers for the day, Mike, Jarod, Sheree (she’s Jarod’s wife) and Mandy (Mike’s spouse).

Nicer folks you won’t find. It was great fun.

In no time, lunch was ready. We feasted on coconut rice…

Lobster…yum!

And fish stew.

Fresh and tasty doesn’t even begin to describe it.

My hat’s off to Alex.

A mighty fine meal indeed. And a big thanks to Denzel, uh, Oliver for a great day on the water.

I can’t wait to share the rest of the outing with you.

Wish you were here!